The Dallas Mavericks are amid an intense series with the LA Clippers in the first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs, and tomorrow night they have a chance to take a 2-1 lead at home.

Dallas is coming off a narrow Game 2 win on the road, but Game 1 didn’t go as well. The Mavs lost 109-97 in a game that looks much closer than it was, and Dallas’ second-half comeback helped give the Mavs some momentum to get a much better start in Game 2.

Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving, and P.J. Washington’s performances late in the game helped the Mavs get the win, and Irving is someone who has been dominant in the clutch all season long. Irving’s clutch gene is unbelievable, and he takes his game to the next level in the fourth quarter every game.

NBA robs Kyrie Irving of Clutch Player of the Year

While Mavericks fans and media always recognize Irving’s late-game dominance, the rest of the NBA hasn’t done the same.

Earlier this month, Irving’s odds to win the 2023-24 Clutch Player of the Year weren’t even listed. All signs were pointing to the NBA and the media completely overlooking him for this award, and this is an award he should have been deep in the running for or even won.

The complete voting results for the 2023-24 Kia NBA Clutch Player of the Year. pic.twitter.com/vAEzGmiZS3

— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) April 25, 2024

Stephen Curry ended up winning the award by a large margin, and Irving finished seventh in voting.

Irving was the most clutch player on the No. 2 clutch team in the NBA, and him not being higher on voter’s ballots is baffling. Irving averaged 4.2 points per game in the clutch while shooting 60 percent from the field, 42.1 percent from downtown, and 95.5 percent from the free-throw line.

Curry also posted impressive clutch stats as he averaged 4.4 points per game while shooting 49.6 percent from the field, 45.7 percent from downtown, and 95.1 percent from the free-throw line. Curry should definitely been near the top in voting for this award, but Irving’s efficiency and his team’s overall success in the clutch should have helped him be higher on this list.

The Warriors were 24-24 in the clutch while the Mavs were 23-9. This is a huge difference, and it doesn’t look like team success in the clutch factors into this award at all.

Irving also hit one of the craziest game-winners in recent memory against the Denver Nuggets earlier in the season and his ability to close out games helped the Mavs get the No. 5 seed.

Curry wasn’t an awful choice for the Clutch Player of the Year award, but Irving did enough to be at least in the conversation to beat him out.

For all the latest on Kyrie Irving and the Dallas Mavericks throughout their hopeful run in the 2024 NBA Playoffs, stay tuned.